Entrepreneurship as a socio-economic empowerment tool to close the gender gap in a Himalayan transboundary landscape

Strengthening women’s economic empowerment through entrepreneurship has been identified as an effective approach to closing the global gender gap. In the Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH) region, the gender gap is further exacerbated due to the specificities of mountain environments (i.e., inaccessibility, fragility, marginality and heterogeneity), socio-cultural factors and the political environment. Lessons learned from applying entrepreneurship as a tool to enhance women’s socioeconomic empowerment in the transboundary Kailash Sacred Landscape have indicated that family support, social trust, market linkages and an enabling policy environment are important factors that contribute to the success of women entrepreneurs.